The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-03-08
amtdliqet1rfx
once, Nos. s5 mud 81 Fourteenth Street.
TIE JOHN BROWN GALLows,
In tho Possession OF Ohio Parties, Safely
Stored Awny. +

III tho Possession OF Ohio Pnrtles, Snfel.
Stored Awny.
Fremont. o dhpa.eh to Cincinnati Com. Gazette.
During the past few years inquiries hay,
been made as to what has become OF the
scatIo!d on which John Brown was hanged
Only q few days ago the inquiry was mad,
In the Washington dispatches, saying ths
the lumber had been used in building ,
porch, and that the porch had eince beer
torn down, and nothing was known OF tn,
whereabouts OF tho tiinbnrs. O%tcourse /
only remains now for Ohio to step for
ward and claim the possession OF the scat
fold.
Mr.. J.B. Van Doron. OF this city, ant
Mr.. John O. Baker, Of Mechsnicshurg, 0,
have arranged with John N. Coyle & 90,
Chsrleutown, W. Va, for the HcafIold, and
have 1t carefully atotei away in theil
building ut Merchandising. Mr.. Van
Doren kindly allowed your correspondent
to examine tho atlidavits and statements
OF the party who built and took down the
ecaflold and OF a number Of old and relia.
BILE citizens Of Cherlestown, W. Va.
which prove without doubt tho iden.
tity. Of the scalIold. The whole story
OF tho gallows from tho time they were
built to their shipment to Mechanicsburp
is told In the following afidayits of the
builder, Mr.. David II. Cockrill:
State OF West Virginia, Jefferson county.
to.wit: Clerks office Of tho Circuit Court
Of said county.
Personally appeared before me, Frank
P. Lynch, Clerk OF the Circuit Court Of
Jefferson county, State of West Virginia,
| navtI II Nnntrf1t n 1;tsuo, ~ n,sl 80.
town and State, and personally known to
me, and tho said David h. Cockrill being
duly sworn on the Holy Evangelist OF al.
mighty God, deposes as followa; l was
employed by the authorities OF Jefferson
county in the year 1858 to erect a ecaHold
Tor the execution OF John Brown and
those who were implicated with him in
the raid on Harper's Ferry in the above
named year. In pursuance OF said en-.
ployment, l purchaged from VIM. Phillips
a lot Of lumber 10 be used for that pur.
pose.
On the Cd day Of December, in the
morning OF that day, l erected q scafold
In g field situated in Charlestown, Jelror.
son county, W. Va, and lying along the
east eide Of Samuel etreet extended, being
assisted by Charles Barrett, Jacob B. Craft
and Joseph X. Cockrill.
On that Hcaflold they erected, John
Brown, the Noted Abolitionist leader, was
hanged in my presence at l2 o'clock on
tho I'd day OF December, 1850.
An hour or two after his execution
took the scstlold down, being assisted by
the same persons above mentioned, who
were my employees at that time, and we
conveyed it to the jail-yard in eaid town,
where We carefully slowed it away. On
tho morning Of the 10Th OF April, 1859,
two weeks thereafter, and assisted by the
same parties, l took tho lumber from the
jail yard and erected it again as a scairold
on the same epo. as bstore, and bstwsen
10 o'clock A. Nj. and 2 o'clock 4. NJ. on that
day, John Brown's accomplices, Edwin
Copgoc, John E. Cooke, Shields Green
and John Copeland were hanged. An
hour or two after their execution the
scat'old IVES again taken down BY me.
assisted by the same employees, and the
lumber conveyed by me to the ieil yard
before mentioned and slowed away as be.
fore. On the morning Of the 10th day OF
March, 1850, l took the lumber from the
jail-yasd, where I had it secured, and
erected it the third time into O scafold,
being aselsted by the same men, in the
same field oil John Browns execution,
and between the hours OF 10 and . on
that day Aaron D. Stevens and Albert
1szlett, alias William Harrisop, two
more Of tho John Brown party, were
hung thereon.
An hour or tTo thereafter the same mar.
ties took down the scaGold eud put il
securely away in tho aamo plsce III the
Jail yard.
Alter au interview with Braxton p. Da,
venpott, President Of the County Courts
OF Jefferson county, aa to what I should
DO with this scalold, I Was authorized to
dispose Of it 10 I pleased. Accordingly O
lew days after 1 removed it from the Jail
yard and erected out Of the lumber a
front porch to the reeidenco Of Daniel
Sheets, on the corner Of Lawrence and
Liberty %strceic, in ChsTlestown, Jefferson
county, West Va, in which perch the
lumber remained uudisturbed until the
summer Of 1883, when Colonel John NJ.
Coyle purchased tho property, and ct hie
request, sssistsd By Chss. 3. Barrett, the
same party who helped ms to bald the
scaGold aud the ssid porch, I took this
porch down, cn.efu!ly marked the lumber
piece by piece with red keel, that there
might he no mistake as 10 its identity and
no danger Of its loss, sad delivered it into
tho possession OF John NJ. Coyle and
placed it in q room on the second floor OF
the jail Building in Cherleatown, where it
is now, under lock and key, in possession
Of John NJ. Coyle & Co.
No II has handled this lumber since
the dry it was first purchased for the pur-
pose oi " EcaiIold but myself and my EN-.
ployes, "a above stated.
D. a.. CocKR1LL.
State OF West Virginia, Jefferson Couu.
ty,. to.wit: The foregoing affidavit was
duly made and subscribed to before me by
the said D. II. Cockrill, this 18th day Of
L March II SSI In 4aat;nnnnp mhnsaaI